Safety net



April 7, 1970 H. B. SULLIVAN 3,504,765

SAFETY NET Filed May 13, 1968 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG. I.

Jluveam;- ARRY B. SULLIVAN Attorney April 7, 1970 H. B. SULLIVAN 3,504,765

SAFETY NET Filed May 13, 1968 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Inventor HARRY B, SULLIVAN flaw- Attorney United States Patent 3,504,765 SAFETY NET Harry B. Sullivan, Box 241, Thamesville, Ontario, Canada Filed May 13, 1968, Ser. No. 728,447 Int. Cl. A621) 1/22 US. Cl. 182-138 7 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A safety net with a flexible body and a rigid peripheral frame for releasably suspending the flexible net body in a rising structure such as a poured concrete silo; the peripheral frame having a plurality of suspending members individually connectible with and releasable from each silo form ring as it is successively arranged in place whereby the net creeps up contemporaneously with the wall of the structure as it rises layer upon layer.

protection, as for instance in the construction of poured concrete silos.

It is an object of this invention to provide a safety net, especially designed for use with a gradually rising structure, that may be raised contemporaneously with the wall as it is built up layer upon layer.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a safety net suspended, as from the wall form ring, being releasably engageable with each new form ring successively arranged in operative position.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a safety net that may be supported also at its center as by connection with a vertically slidable collar on the center pole of a silo ring that may be held at progressively higher levels by a removable pin underlying the collar and extending through a selected transverse bore in the pole.

A still further object of the invention is the provision of a sectionalized safety net with the net portion releasably connected to inner and outer frames respectively and wherein the net portion may be composed of two or more separable sectors and at least the other of said frames may be composed of a plurality of rigidly connectible circumferential or peripheral segments.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a safety net for protecting workmen engaged in erecting structures such as poured concrete silos that is characterized by structural simplicity, lightweight, ease of initial installation and progressive use, efiiciency and durability, and being capable of manufacture at reason able cost is thereby rendered commercially desirable.

To the accomplishment of these and related objects as shall become apparent as the description proceeds, the invention resides in the construction, combination and arrangement of parts as shall be hereinafter more fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings and pointed out in the claims hereunto appended.

The invention will be best understood and can be more clearly described when reference is had to the drawings forming a part of this disclosure wherein like characters indicate like parts throughout the several views.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a plan view of the safety net;

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FIGURE 2 is an enlarged detail plan of a portion thereof;

FIGURE 3 is an elevational detail of the outer end of the suspending member;

FIGURE 4 is an elevational detail of supporting collar adjustably supported on the silo ring central pole;

FIGURES 5 and 6 are detail plans of segments of the outer or perimetral frame and inner ring frame respectively; and

FIGURE 7 is an enlarged sectional detail on line 77 of FIGURE 5.

Referring now to the drawings, the flexible net body 1 here shown is of circular form and is provided with a rigid outer frame 2. Furthermore, the net body has a central opening with a rigid inner frame 3 disposed therein. From outer or peripheral frame 2, a plurality of spaced suspending members 4 extend radially for individually and releasably attaching to a supporting structure while from the inner frame 3, a plurality of spaced suspending members 5 extend radially inwards for engagement with a centrally disposed supporting structure. When used in conjunction with a building structure such as a poured concrete silo that rises layer by layer, the peripheral frame suspending members 4, as each new set of forms and rings are put in place, are individually detached from the last form ring and attached to the newly placed ring at the higher level and the inner frame suspending members 5 are simultaneously elevated to a higher position on the centrally disposed supporting structure.

Both outer and inner frames 2 and 3 are of annular form and preferably tubular in cross section. Outer frame 2, as shown, is composed of six separable segments of tubing each with a stud 6 aflixed as by welding in one end and projecting beyond such end for fitting snugly in the confronting open tubular end of the next adjacent segment. On the outer circumference a hook 7 is swingingly attached to the stud-carrying end of each Segment for locking engagement with an eye 8 on the stud-receiving end of the next segment. Equally spaced about the composite peripheral frame 2 are inwardly extending steel hooks 9, eight such hooks being securely welded to each segment.

The inner ring frame 3 is likewise formed of tubular material and consists of only two separable halves Whose adjoining ends are similarly interfitted and locked together. This ring frame is also provided with spaced steel hooks 10 that are welded to the frame but disposed to extend outwardly, as seen in FIGURE 6. There are just half the number of hooks on the inner ring frame 3 as on the outer peripheral frame 2.

The flexible net body 1 is formed of any suitable rope of vegetable, metal or synthetic material such as polypropylene three strand monopro rope and is shown as consisting of four spaced concentric ropes 11 supported by circumferentially spaced radial ropes 12 running between the outer and inner frames 2 and 3 with each of such radial ropes 12 being doubled in two reaches arranged in V-form with the apex of each V disconnectably attaching to one of the outwardly facing hooks 10 on the inner ring frame 3 and the free ends of the two reaches disconnectably attaching to an adjacent pair of inwardly facing hooks 9 on the outer peripheral frame 2. Spacing tubes 13, of plastic or the like, are arranged on the concentric ropes 11 between the reaches of the V-formed radial ropes 12. To further facilitate the handling of the net 1, it is fashioned of two diseonnectable half portions with fasteners such as coacting eyes and snap fasteners 14 on confronting ends of the several concentric ropes 11.

The suspending members 4 for the outer frame 2 may consist of a length of chain 15, one secured to each segment and carrying a flat book 16 on its free end for convenient releasable attachment to a silo form ring, as indicated at 17, in FIGURE 3. For the inner ring frame 3, three suspending chains 18 should suffice, these being similarly secured in equal circumferential spacing to the two-part ring. The inner ends of these three suspending chains 18 connect with a collar 19, slidable vertically on the center pole 20 of a silo rig as shown in FIGURE 4, that is supported at the desired height by a removable transverse pin 21 passed horizontally through a selected bore in the silo rig pole.

Various situations in which this safety net may be employed will suggest changes in its specific form, however, from the foregoing description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, it will be manifest that a safety net is provided that will fulfil all the necessary requirements of such a device but as many changes could be made in the above description and many apparently widely di'iferent embodiments of the invention may be constructed Within the scope of the appended claims, without departing from the spirit or scope thereof, it is intended that all matters contained in the said accompany ing specification and drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limitative or restrictive sense.

What is claimed is:

1. A safety net for suspension within a rising structure in construction work or the like comprising a flexible net body, a rigid peripheral frame for said body and suspending members extending radially outward from said rigid frame for individually and releasably attaching to a surrounding supporting structure.

2. The safety net according to claim 1, wherein the frame is composed of a plurality of separable segments of tubular material, each segment having a male stud afiixed in one end for snug fitting accommodation in the open tubular end of the next adjacent segment and complementary locking means on adjoining segments.

3. A safety net according to claim 1, wherein the net body has a central opening and a rigid inner frame disposed therein and disconnectably attached thereto; said rigid inner frame being composed of two separable halves of tubular material, each half having a male stud afiixed in one end for snug fitting accommodation in the open tubular end of the other half and complementary locking means on the adjoining ends of said halves.

4. A safety net according to claim 1, wherein the net body has a central opening, an inner frame disposed therein and disconnectably attached thereto, suspending members extending radially inwards from said inner frame, a centrally disposed pole and a slidable collar supportable at the desired height on said pole and engaged by said inwardly extending suspending members.

5. The safety net according to claim 1, wherein the net body has a central opening, an inner frame disposed therein; said net body being disconnectably attached to both said first mentioned peripheral frame and said inner frame and said net body is composed of two disconnectable half portions.

6. A safety net according to claim 8 wherein both outer and inner frames are annular and the net body is of circular form and composed of a plurality of spaced concentric ropes supported -by circumferentially spaced radial ropes running between said outer and inner spaced annular frames.

7. A safety net according to claim 8, wherein both outer and inner frames are annular and the net body is of circular form and composed of a plurality of spaced concentric ropes supported by circumferentially spaced radial ropes running between said outer and inner spaced annular frames, each of said radial ropes being doubled with the two reaches thereof arranged in V-forrn and spacing tubes on said concentric ropes between the reaches of said Vs.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 155,560 9/1874 Wingard 182139 396,491 1/1889 Hunter 182-138 817,107 4/1906 Fearrington 1- 182139 1,018,698 2/1912 Dennis 182-138 2,294,509 9/1942 Moeller 182139 FOREIGN PATENTS 104,856 5/ 1963 Netherlands.

REINALDO P. MACHADO, Primary Examiner 

